Denver Post sports writer Adrian Dater posts his Avs Mailbag on Mondays during the 2008-09 NHL season. The next installment is slated for April 13.
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I wish Joe Sakic could play forever, but based on the last two years, . I really hope that he retires soon so that the Avs can make some long-term plans. It’s really not fair to the team to keep them in limbo like last summer. Thoughts?
— Scott Ingram, Las Vegas
Scott – I make no hard and fast prediction right here, but I think this will be it for Our Joe. I still believe the temptation will be strong for him to play in the Olympics for Canada in his hometown of Vancouver (and that is his real
hometown, by the way, NOT Burnaby, B.C., which is what is commonly listed on his media bio). But there are too many signs that are pointing to him calling it a career when the season is over.
First off, he’ll be 40 in July, and now has a surgically repaired back — never easy to play with at any age. Second, if he wants to play for the Avs next year, he’ll probably have to play for a lot less money than he’s made in a long time (see previous Avs cap problems). Third, why would he want to come back and play at all this season if it isn’t for some kind of symbolic farewell to the fans? Why not just forget this rest of the wretched season, don’t take a chance on re-injuring anything so soon and take the whole summer to get stronger?
I hope every Avs fanatic has tickets to the season finale against St. Louis at the Pepsi Center, because I think it will be the last game the great Sakic ever plays. (And I hope I’m wrong).
At this point in the season (or their careers), it appears neither Andrew Raycroft nor Peter Budaj is going to develop into a true No. 1 NHL goalie, although Avs management continues to ride Budaj over Raycroft. Do you think the Avs will release both goalies? (I don’t know what their contract status is at the end of the year.) Or will they keep one? If they do keep one, who do you believe it will/should be? Thanks.
— Jeff F., Littleton
Jeff – Yes, I think that neither goalie will be back next season. It’s unfortunate for them, but I just have to believe the Avs are going to want to start fresh with two new goalies, from somewhere. There will be a few veteran names out on the free-agent market (Manny Legace anyone) that they probably will be able to snag at $1 million-2 million a year. We’ll see, but I just think Budaj and Raycroft will be with other teams next year.
There is a lot of chatter among in-the-know Avs fans about a free-agent Swedish goalie prospect named Jonas Gustavsson. He just broke Henrik Lundqvist’s Swedish Elite League playoff record. Is there any talk in the Avs organization about this guy?
— Rick, Littleton
Rick – Yes, I have heard some chatter that the Avs are interested in making a run at him. Trouble is, nobody in the front office wants to confirm that, so all we have in the meantime is gossip.
Gustavsson plays for Farjestad of the Swedish League and recently posted a scoreless streak of over 238 minutes and has his team poised to win a championship. He’s 6-foot-4 and nicknamed “The Monster.”
There will definitely be a bidding war of some kind for his services, and the question is: will the Avs be too hamstrung by their payroll for next season to make a legitimate run at him? The Avs have nearly $44 million in cap hit money going to only 13 players for next season, so it won’t be easy.
A.D. – Ryan Stoa’s season is officially at a close, and he becomes a free agent on July 1. I realize that he has one year of eligibility left, but rumor is that he wants to “pull a Blake Wheeler” and become a free agent. How does a GM handle this situation? I would be VERY upset if the Avs lost out on Stoa.
— Tucker, Austin, Texas
Tucker – They must have heard you when you sent this e-mail, because . So, worry not. I would say there is a decent chance Stoa could be the Avs’ third-line center next season, maybe even second if Wojtek Wolski falls out of favor or winds up somewhere else.
I wish I could say I’ve seen him play a lot more than I have. But from what some who do watch a lot of college hockey tell me, Stoa has what it takes to be a player in this league.
I was wondering if you have any more updates on Scott Parker? We know about the aborted contract and what-not, but is he trying to get an NHL spot or retiring due to post-concussion syndrome?
— Brian, Littleton
Brian – Honestly, I haven’t heard of Parker doing much more than laying low and trying to figure out what he’ll do next in his life. It’s possible he could play somewhere else in the NHL next season, or in Europe or some other league. But it’s probably likely that his NHL days are over.
I don’t believe the concussion issue is a problem anymore, from what I heard last about him.
Adrian – I am so tired of injuries from blocked shots. Is throwing your body to block a shot that important to risk your top forwards? For the Avs, I think this started in the stretch run a few years ago in the post-Patrick Roy era because of lack of confidence in the goalies. Are other teams as committed to blocking shots?
— Rob Corkran, Uncompahgre Plateau
Rob – Blocking shots started to come more into vogue in the NHL following the lockout, primarily because of the rules changes regarding obstruction. Because defensemen couldn’t hook and hold as much, coaches started designing more team defenses based on collapsing everybody around the goalie and trying to make it harder to get shots through. That has
worked — and also resulted in seemingly more injuries because of it, like you say.
Columbus coach Ken Hitchcock says there are “basically six goalies out there now,” all trying to block the shot. I agree to an extent — some guys probably shouldn’t try to block shots as much. Guys that a team can’t afford to miss, that is.
The Avs aren’t going to benefit from Paul Stastny blocking one shot if it means he might miss eight weeks from a broken bone, as was the case in December. That injury precipitated the team falling apart, basically. I’m not saying some guys should be immune from doing any kind of dirty work like that. But you get my point.
How does Lake Erie compensate when half of its team is called up by the Avs? Do they have another minor league team they can call guys up from? I can see it not being an issue when a guy is called up for a game or two. But what do the Monsters do when some players (Chris Stewart, Brian Willsie, T.J. Hensick, etc.) stay with the Avs for the remainder of the season? Thanks!
— Shannon, Littleton
Shannon – Good question, and it works pretty much like it does for the Avs when they get injuries and can raid the pantry for Monster players. Lake Erie can call guys up from its ECHL affiliate, the Johnstown (Pa.) Chiefs.
That’s what Lake Erie has done a lot of late, calling up guys from the Chiefs. The Avs have had a few of their drafted prospects play with the Chiefs this season, guys such as Codey Burki and Ray Macias. Wes O’Neill, who played for the Avs Sunday night in Anaheim, played for a bit at Johnstown, too.
Adrian Dater has covered the Colorado Avalanche since the team moved to Denver in 1995. , or .
